The new army chief's highest priority must be to address the critical hollowness in the Indian Army's operational preparedness, says Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
Gen Rawat's comments about the supporting role of the Air Force came at a conference when asked about the growing perception that the Indian Air Force was not keen on setting up the proposed theatre commands integrating the capabilities of the three forces.
The lone survivor in the IAF helicopter crash that killed Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat, and 12 others, and initially admitted to a hospital at Wellington in the Nilgiris district in Tamil Nadu, was shifted to Bengaluru for higher treatment on Thursday, official sources said.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held two-back-to-back meetings with top military brass on Tuesday deliberating on the situation in eastern Ladakh after an Indian Army officer and two soldiers were killed in a violent clash with Chinese troops in Galwan Valley.
Last month, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat had revealed that Pakistan very recently "reactivated" the terror camp in Balakot.
Out of the 13 people killed in the IAF helicopter crash near Coonoor on Wednesday, the mortal remains of only Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and Brig LS Lidder could be identified, officials said on Thursday.
'It is ironic that General Rawat, an infantry officer who the government chose because of his expertise in counter-insurgency, has made his first bold statement in the realm of warfighting and mechanised operations,' points out Colonel Ajai Shukla (retd).
The Chinese activity at an air base near the Barahoti area has also gone up and a large number of drones have been deployed by them there, they said.
The pilot ejected safely and a court of inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident, the IAF said in a brief statement.
It was decided that the senior-most Army officer in a state would get in touch with the chief minister to understand the requirement and take forward the process, including offering to treat civilians wherever possible
Gen Naravane also said the Army will enhance combat capabilities along the border with China so that it is fully prepared to deal with any security challenge.
The tearing hurry to form theatre commands has to be replaced by a balanced and deliberate approach. We need to accept that this process will take time if executed correctly and in the best interests of the Indian armed forces, argues Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
The prime minister is presently at one of the forward locations in Nimu and is interacting with personnel of the Army, Air Force and Indo-Tibetan Border Police, official sources said.
Taking to Twitter, Tendulkar thanked the Indian soldiers for their services.
Lt Gen Anil Chauhan (retired) will assume charge as India's new Chief of Defence Staff on Friday, an appointment that is expected to bring the focus back on the implementation of the ambitious theaterisation drive to bring synergy among the three services.
Singh, who was accompanied by Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat and Army Chief Gen MM Naravane, visited the North Hill post and was apprised about the situation at the border by senior officials.
The Army Day is celebrated on January 15 every year to mark the taking over as commander-in-chief of the Indian Army by then Lt Gen K M Carriappa in 1949 from General Francis Butcher, the last British Commander-in-Chief of India.
"India and China are in communication and negotiations on lowering the temperatures through military and diplomatic channels. No party should engage in any action that may escalate the situation at this point," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said during a briefing when asked about the Prime Minister's visit.
He joined the Indian Air Force in Hyderabad in 2000 and was currently posted at the Indian Airforce station in Sulur. Tamil Nadu.
Front-line bases of the Indian army and the air force along the nearly 3,500 km de-facto border with China were Wednesday put on high alert in view of the worst border clash between Indian and Chinese troops in Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh that left 20 Army personnel dead, official sources said.
Here's a look at the tributes.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is likely to call another high-level meeting later today, they added.
The 'institution' of CDS carries tremendous responsibility of modernising the country's military forces, and reflecting the 'hopes and aspirations' of 1.3 billion Indians, Modi said.
Some of the terrorists waiting to infiltrate into India were trained at the Jaish-e-Mohammed camp in Balakot which was bombed by Indian Air Force in February, the sources said.
This is the second successful anti-infiltration operation by the Army in the last 24 hours.
Operations in the Valley would continue as earlier, Rawat said.
"I had clearly said that any case of moral turpitude and corruption will be dealt with in a very stern manner. The Court of Inquiry has recommended that we should go in for court martial proceedings. Last month, an Army Court of Inquiry indicted Maj Gogoi for "fraternising" with a local woman at a Srinagar hotel and being away from his place of duty.
'General Naravane was a soldier's soldier,' the defence ministry said.
Singh paid tributes to soldiers killed in the Kargil War at a memorial in Dras sector.
Around 75 drones of the Indian Army carried multiple mock operations, including kamikaze attacks, first-aid delivery and parachute payload delivery exercises, at the event.
Given its actions, it doesn't appear that Pakistan really wants peace, the army chief added.
'When the government says the army will make a bridge, what does it mean?' 'If this is not stopped here, then there is no telling where and for what all the army will be employed or deployed in the future,' says Veenu Sandhu
Bipin was the brightest among our coursemates and went on to become the first CDS of the country. I believe that all those who have known him and Madhulika will miss them very much, observes Lieutenant General Himalaya Singh (retd).
He brushed aside Pakistan's threat of use of tactical nuclear weapons, saying such statements will not deter India when it comes to defending our borders.
An orange alert has been sounded for Srinagar, Avantipur, Jammu, Pathankot, Hindon airbases after the monitoring of the terrorists' movements by the intelligence agencies.
The armed forces will completely ban the import of clothing, required to sustain its soldiers at extreme temperatures across the country, if the Indian textile industry is able to innovate and manufacture them, said Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat.
The chief of air staff also said that independent air defence systems in the field will have very little relevance in tomorrow's wars unless they are a part of a larger integrated air defence system.
Gen Naravane said the entire nation is proud of the soldiers deployed in Siachen, defending the territorial integrity of India.
Troops of India and China were locked in a standoff in Doklam from June 16, 2017 after the Indian side stopped the building of a road in the disputed area by the Chinese Army.
China has deployed a fleet of underwater drones called Sea Wing (Haiyi) glider in the Indian Ocean, which can operate for months on end and make observations for naval intelligence purposes, according to defence analyst HI Sutton.
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